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Daily Business Report-May 16, 2014

Defense Contractor, 530 Jobs Leaving San Diego

Defense contractor Pratt & Whitney AeroPower is moving out of San Diego.

The company announced Thursday that over the next two years it will close its facility on Ruffin Road, which employs 530 people. The facility is the base for the company’s division that manufactures airline auxiliary power units.

“This decision, while a difficult one to make, is necessary to maintain our competitiveness in the market, further leverage Pratt & Whitney’s network and best position the company for the future,” spokesman Ray Hernandez said in a statement. “This decision is by no means a reflection on the performance of Pratt & Whitney AeroPower employees. The company realizes the impact this realignment will have on employees and we are committed to supporting those affected during this transition period.”

Pratt & Whitney AeroPower’s military APU business will transition to Pratt & Whitney’s Military Engines organization. Its facilities in Florida, Georgia and Texas are being considered for the military operation’s relocation. The commercial side will go to Pratt & Whitney Canada, with much of the work being performed at its Rzeszow, Poland facility.

Hernandez said Pratt & Whitney did not apply for the California Competes tax credit, which are new state incentives to try to keep companies from relocating. A spokesman for the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, Go-Biz, declined to comment on Pratt & Whitney’s announcement.

San Diego County Jobless Rate Drops to 6 Percent

Nonfarm employment up by 2,900 jobs over the month and up 29,000 jobs over the year

Jobs

The unemployment rate in the San Diego County was 6.0 percent in April 2014, down from a revised 6.9 percent in March 2014, and below the year-ago estimate of 7.2 percent, the state Employment Development Department reported today.

California’s jobless rate for the same period was 7.3 percent. The nation’s unemployment rate was 5.9 percent.

• Three other nonfarm sectors also added jobs over the month. The most notable employment growth came from trade, transportation, and utilities (up 2,300). Retail trade gained 1,100 jobs followed by an increase of 900 jobs in wholesale trade. Transportation, warehousing, and utilities grew by 300 jobs.

• Professional and business services recorded the greatest year-over gain, adding 6,200 jobs. Professional, scientific, and technical services added 6,200 jobs, while management of companies and enterprises increased by 500 jobs. A decline of 500 jobs in administrative and support and waste services offset the overall job growth in this sector.

• Seven other industries also reported employment growth over the year. The most significant job gains came from trade, transportation, and utilities (up 5,300); leisure and hospitality (up 4,300); construction (up 4,300); and educational and health services (up 3,500).

Russell Trailer Co. Purchases Otay Mesa Building

2520 Cactus Road

Cassidy Turley, a leading commercial real estate services provider in the U.S., reports that the Russell Trailer Co. has purchased a 7,500-square-foot industrial building at 2520 Cactus Road in Otay Mesa for $1.5 million. Darren Mullins of Cassidy Turley’s San Diego office represented the buyer. The seller, the John Alexander Cameron & Shirley Arlene Cameron Family Trust, was represented by Chris Holder and Mark Lewkowitz of Cushman & Wakefield. According to Mullins, the buyer plans to use the property for a trailer leasing business. The company is relocating/expanding from an existing facility it occupies on Heritage Road, also in Otay Mesa.

Rendering of condos to be built in Oceanside

McKellar McGowan to Build Oceanfront Condos

OCEANSIDE — McKellar McGowan LLC, a San Diego-based real estate development company, has closed escrow on a 0.85-acre oceanfront site in Oceanside and plans to build 17 luxury condominiums to be named the 700 South Strand. Configured in a two-story building, the project will have four different floor plans and two models. Flats will range from 1,450 to 2,600 square feet, each with an oceanfront view.

The community will be gated with a covered parking garage for its owners. Each condo will be fully equipped with gourmet kitchens and high-level finishes.

McKellar McGowan is expected to break ground in June with units going on sale the first quarter of 2015.

“The true asset of this property is the location. We are providing owners of 700 South Strand amazing beach front property with modern design and comfort,” said Tim McGowan, president of McKellar McGowan.

The development is a quarter-mile from the Oceanside pier.

San Diego Opera Cuts Ties With Ian Campbell

Ian Campbell

After 31 years, the San Diego Opera has officially parted ways with general and artistic director Ian Campbell. His ex-wife, Ann Spira Campbell, the opera’s deputy general director, is also no longer with the company, according to a brief statement released late Thursday.

“The Opera acknowledges and thanks Ian and Ann for their dedication and contributions to the Opera over the past many years. At the same time, the Opera also acknowledges that current differences with them need to be resolved,” opera officials said in the statement.

Lawyers for both sides continue to negotiate a settlement.

The Campbells were placed on paid leave on April 25 and are no longer on the company payroll.

The Campbells’ employment contracts have been a flashpoint since the opera board, in a surprise move guided by Campbell, voted 33-1 on March 19 to shut down at the end of the 2014 season. The closing date has since been postponed to May 19. A press conference is scheduled for Monday where an announcement will be made about the company’s future. — KPBS

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